Published: August 18, 2010
Egyptian bank pays US$542mn for stake in Lebanese institution.
Egyptian investment bank EFG Hermes has agreed to pay US$542mn in cash for a 65% stake in Lebanon’s Crédit Libanais.
The bank hopes the deal will allow it to move from an investment bank to a universal bank with interests in retail, corporate and Islamic banking.
EFG Hermes will also have a call option over an additional 25% interest in the target, which it can exercise during the next two years.
In January EFG Hermes sold its stake in Lebanon’s Bank Audi for US$913.4mn to a group of unidentified individual buyers.